Elon Musk wants to send a million people to Mars. The businessman said this at the 67th Congress of the International Astronautical Federation. Let's try to understand what the concept of the head of SpaceX is.
Technology and people
The whole world, with bated breath, listened to Elon Musk's speech dedicated to flights to Mars. This performance was expected for a long time, and I must say, it met all expectations. Musk has announced the ambitious Interplanetary Transport System (ITS) project, formerly known as the Mars Colonial Transporter (MCT). This project was known before, but the details appeared only now.
We are talking about a giant launch vehicle, as well as a huge ship that it will launch into orbit. The rocket hull diameter will be 12 m, and the ship hull diameter - 17 m. The height of the first stage of the rocket made of composite carbon fiber will be 77 m. The launch vehicle will be larger than the famous Saturn V, which the Americans used for the lunar expedition.
A new generation Raptor methane engine is being developed for ITS. The other day, by the way, his first successful fire tests took place. The Raptor should be the most powerful rocket engine there is today. Its planned specific impulse is 382 seconds, and its thrust is 3 meganewtons.
The spacecraft will act as the second stage. It is assumed that the 150-ton "monster" will be able to transfer up to 100 people to Mars at a time. At the same time, the developers promise comfortable conditions. “The layout is like on a liner. You won't be bored on board,”Musk says.
Promotional video:
First, the ship will be launched into an intermediate orbit. Then, according to the concept, the first stage will return back to Earth and will be restarted: this time with a fuel tank intended for refueling the spacecraft. After refueling, the shuttle will head towards the Red Planet, revealing two 200 kilowatt solar panels. The cruising speed of the ship will be 100,800 km / h.
It is assumed that the average flight time will be 115 days, and in the future it can be reduced to 88. SpaceX calculated that 7% of the original fuel supply will be enough for the shuttle to return from the Red Planet. So that he can fly to Earth and again set off on a long journey. In total, the ship can be used up to 15 times. The first experimental shuttle flight is planned to be carried out in 2022, and in 2024 SpaceX wants to send the ship to Mars in a place with passengers.
It is reported that the price of a "space" ticket may drop to 200 thousand dollars. As for the cost of the project itself, it is estimated that it will require up to 2 billion investments per year. SpaceX itself does not have such money: they want to collect the required amount with the help of sponsorship and partner programs.
"Alien" city
The ITS concept is part of an incredible plan to conquer the Red Planet. During his speech, Musk emphasized that humans should become an "interplanetary species." According to the head of SpaceX, only this will allow humanity to survive, because we are inevitably awaiting a catastrophe that will make life on our home planet impossible.
As a way out, the entrepreneur sees the construction of a completely autonomous settlement on Mars. But why exactly Mars? Musk believes that conditions on Venus and Mercury are too harsh, and that the satellites of the gas giants suitable for colonization are very far away. The Moon is nearby, but it does not have the necessary resources (at least in sufficient quantities).
To create a Martian settlement, it will be necessary to build about 1000 interplanetary ships, each of which will make 10-15 voyages. The purpose of all this is to move a million people to Mars. Thus, on the Red Planet, Musk wants to create a giant autonomous city. The implementation of this project, according to SpaceX estimates, will take 40 to 100 years.
At the same time, Musk considers the Interplanetary Transport System not only as a means of delivering people to Mars. In the future, when people "subjugate" the Red Planet, using ITS it will be possible to reach asteroids, satellites of gas giants and even the dwarf planet Pluto. To realize all this, SpaceX is working on the concept of "space refueling". Elon Musk says that with constant refueling, the ship will be able to fly anywhere.
In general, the concept of the Interplanetary Transport System, despite all its thoughtfulness, still looks too ambitious. Especially when viewed in light of SpaceX's recent failure. At the same time, as we have already been convinced many times, it is also impossible to underestimate the tenacity of Elon Musk.
Ilya Vedmedenko
